In a common locking device, such as an exposed shackle type padlock, a U-shaped hinged shackle is passed through one or more rings (or through-holes), and the free end of the shackle inserted and retained in a bore on the housing of the padlock. The rings are now said to be locked using the padlock. In such an exposed shackle type locking device, the shackle is exposed, and therefore prone to attack (applying torque to the shackle, applying a tension force to the shackle, cutting the shackle, etc.). A hidden shackle style locking device (hereinafter referred to as a ‘hockey puck lock’) is sometimes used to prevent access to the shackle and thereby reduce such attack. A hockey puck lock has a generally stubby cylindrical shape with a rounded front and back surface. The rounded back surface defines a generally rectangular cavity to receive one or more parallel plates (which are to be locked together) with mating through-holes. A cylindrical shackle coupled to a central cylinder having a locking mechanism therein is slidably disposed on the housing to lock the one or more parallel plates together. To lock the parallel plates together using such a hockey puck lock, the parallel plates with the mating through-holes are located within the rectangular cavity, and the shackle is slid through these through-holes. An operator key is then used to activate locking pins in the central cylinder allowing the shackle to rotate and, thereby, engage with locking feature provided in the housing. When the shackle turns, a groove or a tab formed on the tip of the shackle engages with a corresponding geometry within the cylindrical cavity, thereby locking the shackle in place.
A KiK cylinder is a type of central cylinder with a locking mechanism that is commonly available in the market. For instance, common residential front door locks incorporate KiK cylinders in their design. Due to the wide popularity of KiK cylinders, and their wide spread use in a variety of locking applications, the outer dimensions of the KiK cylinders have been standardized. The working part of the cylinder (the part which interacts with the lock housing) uses an intermediary called a tail piece or a driver to adapt to a particular brand of lock. Generally, there are three versions of tail pieces used to accommodate the various types of KiK cylinders. These versions of tail pieces are named, “the schlage® driver,” “the lori driver,” and “medeco® driver,” after major lock suppliers whose locks these drivers are designed to interface with. It should be noted, however, that each of these drivers can be used with KiK cylinders from a number of lock manufacturers. For instance, the schlage® driver can be used with KiK cylinders from lock manufacturers other than Schlage®. Due to the wide availability of KiK cylinders, it would be advantageous to incorporate the KiK cylinder in a hockey puck lock.
In a common lock incorporating a KiK cylinder, the KiK cylinder is slid into the housing (in a longitudinal direction) of the lock, locked in place, and then used to operate the lock. Operating the lock allows a shackle to move in a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the KiK cylinder to lockingly engage with a locking feature. In a hockey puck lock, however, the locking operation requires the shackle (along with the attached central cylinder) to slide along its longitudinal axis before it lockingly engages with the locking features in the lock housing. That is, if sliding along the longitudinal axis is utilized to insert the KiK cylinder in a hockey puck lock, unlocking the lock may also cause the KiK cylinder to be separated from the housing. Therefore, incorporating a KiK cylinder into a hockey puck lock, without causing the KiK cylinder to detach from the lock housing every time the lock is unlocked, is challenging.
The present disclosure relies on novel design features to incorporate a KiK cylinder in a hockey puck lock.